The princess regretted it.

Chapter 206 Attacked

However, those sharp howls seemed only a prelude. Immediately afterwards, a group of mysterious, masked figures, clad in black, emerged from all directions of the forest. They moved swiftly, like ghosts, and in the blink of an eye, they had completely surrounded Wu Changfeng's group. Each of these mysterious figures wielded a gleaming blade, their eyes gleaming with murderous intent, clearly harboring ill intentions. Their swift and orderly movements clearly showed they were well prepared.

Wu Changfeng's face was solemn. He gripped the sword tightly in his hand, his eyes swept over these mysterious people one by one, thinking about how to deal with them.

The soldiers of the grain transport team were frightened by this sudden change, but they also knew that they could not escape at this time, so they all held their weapons tightly and guarded the grain.

At the same time, the sound of weapons clashing and fighting could be heard from the front of the mountain road. When Wu Changfeng looked up, he found that the man who had been waiting to greet them had disappeared. He immediately felt that something was wrong and shouted loudly, "Father!"

His voice echoed through the valley, but no one responded. He knew they had been ambushed. He gritted his teeth, spurred his horse forward a few paces, and shouted, "Who are you? How dare you stop the imperial grain transport?"

The man in black didn't answer, but held the sharp blade in his hand, his eyes filled with cold murderous intent. A fierce battle was about to break out. At this time, a man walked out from behind them, also dressed in black and masked. Compared with the other men in black, this man was taller and more burly, and his steps were steady and powerful.

He approached Wu Changfeng, emitting a chilling, oppressive aura. As he approached, he glanced coldly at the people in the encircled convoy. His gaze, like a sharp, icy knife, chilled people's skin. Then, his gaze finally settled on Wu Changfeng. After a brief pause, he spoke slowly, his voice low and hoarse, filled with an endlessly sinister intensity. "Wu Changfeng, today is your day to die. Surrender obediently, and I'll leave you with an intact corpse."

Wu Changfeng's heart trembled, but he remained calm. He snorted coldly and replied, "Hmph! You are such a coward, yet you dare to speak nonsense here. If you have the guts, just tell me your name. Let's have a fair fight. Why do we have to do these sneak attacks!" He was hoping that his father would get away quickly and come to rescue him.

The leading black-clad man heard Wu Changfeng's words and sneered. After his laughter stopped abruptly, he said coldly, "You ignorant fool! How dare you know my name? Kill me." He waved his hand. The group of black-clad men rushed forward and attacked the grain transport convoy.

Wu Changfeng gritted his teeth in hatred, swung the long sword in his hand, and shouted to the grain transport team: "Brothers, if you guard the grain, we will have made a great contribution. Today, follow me, Wu Changfeng, and fight this group of evil bandits to the death! Kill!" After that, he took the lead, waving his sword and rushing towards the black-clothed man in the lead.

Seeing Wu Changfeng leading the charge, the soldiers shouted in unison and rushed towards the man in black like a tide. A thrilling melee instantly broke out on this narrow mountain road. The shouts and sounds of weapons clashing intertwined and resounded throughout the valley.

"Ah!" Lan Zhu woke up from her dream, her heart pounding and her body drenched in sweat. The maid on duty outside heard the noise and knocked on the door, asking softly, "Auntie, is there something wrong?"

Lan Zhu pressed a hand against her chest, trying to calm her heartbeat, which was pounding like a wild horse. She took a few deep breaths, but the terrifying scene from her dream kept replaying in her mind, and cold sweat continued to break out on her forehead. A long moment passed until the maid's voice came again from outside: "Auntie?"

She recovered a little, and replied with a trembling voice: "No... It's okay, I just had a nightmare. Go to sleep and don't worry about me."

"Well... well, if you still feel uncomfortable, you must call me." The maid responded and left quietly.

Lan Zhu lay back down on the bed, but she couldn't sleep anymore. The dream was too real. Wu Changfeng was looking at her, covered in blood. The bloody and desperate scenes behind him seemed to indicate that something ominous was about to happen.

When Wu Changfeng first left the capital, she had thought that if Wu Changfeng died, with the unborn child in her belly, she might be able to secure her position as the mistress of the Marquisate. But in reality, that was only because Liu Qianyi always made her unhappy, and she was originally thinking about the Third Prince.

In fact, she herself knew that the Third Prince was just her dream in the past. Now she was just a little concubine in this marquis's mansion with a low status. There was a huge difference between her and the Third Prince. How could she have such an opportunity?

Furthermore, she knew that without a male leader, a mansion like this would struggle to gain a foothold in the capital. If it truly were only her and her mother-in-law, not only would it not be able to maintain its current status, but its very foundation would likely be shaken. Its former prosperity would likely vanish in a short time, becoming a laughing stock in the eyes of others.

Therefore, Wu Changfeng's safety was of vital importance to the Marquis' Mansion, and to Lan Zhu, it was equally important. After all, she was pregnant with the Wu family's child, and her fate had long been closely tied to the Marquis' Mansion, inseparable.

Because she understood this, the nightmare she had just had, with its bloody scenes, had made her feel a fear she had never felt before. In fact, her life now was pretty good.

Ever since she knew she was pregnant, Fan's attitude towards her had changed a lot. This was her son's flesh and blood, and the barrier in Madam Hou's heart seemed to have suddenly faded a lot.

Every time he saw Lanzhu, his words became gentler, and he would often remind Lanzhu to get enough rest, eat more nutritious food, and not to tire herself or hurt the baby in her belly.

Moreover, with her husband and son now at the border, a distant place riven by war and fraught with danger, Madam Hou was filled with worry. She prayed devoutly in the Buddhist temple every day, beseeching the heavens to bless them with a safe return. The child in Lanzhu's womb was now her only solace during this long wait, the hope of continuing the Wu family bloodline.

Therefore, she treated Lan Zhu with even more care. Not only did she instruct the kitchen to prepare meals according to Lan Zhu's taste, she also specially arranged for two attentive maids to take care of Lan Zhu's daily life. After Liu Qianyi had made a few noises, she sent her back to Jinzhou.

She thought that as long as the child could be born healthy, and when her husband and son returned, the Wu family would have new hope and their lives would be more lively.

Lan Zhu lay on the bed and her hand unconsciously touched her slightly bulging belly. It carried her hopes and was also the bargaining chip she had once tried to use to fight for power and profit.

At this moment, she felt only a surge of uneasiness, tossing and turning, unable to calm herself down. After much thought, she decided to go to the temple to burn some incense, pray to the Buddha, and pray for his protection. However, she didn't realize that cramming at the last minute was inherently self-deceptive.